"He has a very strong character, but he's calm in the Premier League because there's less pressure. He's much calmer than when he was at Barca or Bayern Munich.

"He's honest, methodical and a real perfectionist. He's very demanding, he's strict and he wants to achieve the highest levels possible."

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METHOD: Xavi believes Louis van Gaal is under less pressure in the Premier League

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IDIOT: Xavi says he was unsure about LVG in the first week, but soon understood his methods

"After two days of training under him, I thought, 'Who is this idiot?' After a week, I thought, 'He's right.' He'll always be in my heart, Louis van Gaal."

Xavi continued to discuss Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, who worked under Van Gaal during his time at Barcelona.

The Spanish icon rejected the suggestion that Mourinho worked predominantly as a translator for the Manchester United boss.

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TASKMASTER: Louis van Gaal's intensive methods have been criticised in the past

He explained: "Rubbish. He was the assistant coach, someone who understood the philosophy of Barca and who shared many of the same characteristics of Van Gaal.

"He was very respected by the players. He trained us sometimes alone at Barca B and he was excellent. I'm surprised that he became known for another type of football, more defensive, because he wasn't like that with us."